Rebuilding Your Credit

[nosxih]

I have been reading that paying off a non-revolving account can sometimes kill a score.

I want to pay Conn's off because of the high monthly interest but I don't want to take a score hit either.

Maybe I should just pay down my care credit instead? it is at 3200 of 3500 @ 0% and interest kicks in on 12/14 of this year.

I was going to pay Conn's balance of $800 and the rest of the stimulus check ($1600) to Care Credit.

which way is better?

Message Edited by nosxih on 04-28-2008 08:13 PM

[fused]

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[nosxih]

Yep. Hit enter after typing the title and it posted the message. Habit I guess to hit enter after a sentence. Thanks for your advice!

[mbush12]

I have an account with Conn's.  I asked at the time of getting the account if they report to the CRA's.

I was told that they didn't unless you defaulted. I have not seen them go onto any of my reports. I thought this was funny at the time because one of their biggest selling points to my husband and I was that this account would help our credit.

I have been repaying them at higher than the expected payments because we get 12 months free interest and was told by the rep on the phone that I was not helping my credit by paying my account off ahead of time.  When I asked how this would hurt my credit when they dont report to the CRA's unless you default, she wasn't sure what to say and told me she we talk to a supervisor and call me back.  I waited by the phone (haha) and never got a call back.

[nosxih]

I have a paid off Conn's account (all three CRA's)  which was not really paid off but closed due to a new account being created when we had to get a new fridge. But it is showing up as closed/paid/no baddies.

Then I have the new account which was opened when I bought a fridge and they just rolled the balance from the old account into the new. Also reporting on all three CRA's.

They report every month. I have never been late and pay 100 instead of 66 per month but even with the extra payments my balance still does not move. I want it paid so I can free up that monthly cost.

I am worried however, that my scores will be affected when this account closed due to a zero balance.

I have a new citifinancial personal unsecured loand that is about to start reporting so with the new account ready to start reporting and the Conn's potentially closing I don't know WHAT will become of my current scores. (which are already a pathetic 577 EQ and low 600's for the other two.

[mbush12]

Dang, I wish they would report mine because it would definitely help my score. 

[SisterGirl]

(Bumping for someone that could use this information)....

Conn's is a crazy piece of work indeed ! I recently discovered there is 2 different types of credit account: GE Capital or "in-house", The difference is the in-house account is reported by Conn's as a "secured" account & you pay them directly with a payment book (like the old Fingerhut back in the day) , versus through GE Capital (comes with physical card & you pay GE instead). Once you pay them, they close the account & if you buy another item...it starts a "new" account (completely absurd....if you purchase something while there is an active balance on an open account, you can simply ask them to "add" the item & they will send a new payment book with the combined amounts due).

You can finance for  either 12/24/36 months, but I've never had a reason to go beyond 12 months myself....YMMV

SisterGirl